‘Why not cricket at the Olympics?’

Glenn McGrath believes that pitches for day/night First Class matches with a pink ball need to have some grass, without which the sphere could deteriorate quickly.

“That’s been our experience in Australia,” he said.

The Aussie legend’s comments are interesting, considering Duleep Trophy will be played under lights with a pink ball in Noida later this month.

In the City for another periodical coaching stint at the MRF Pace Foundation, McGrath shared his thoughts on the ongoing Olympics.

He said cricket should be a part of the Games.

“Now you have Rugby Sevens in the Olympics, there is no reason why cricket should not be there. Perhaps you can have Twenty20 cricket. I liked it when cricket was played in the Commonwealth Games.”

Dwelling on Australia’s batting capitulation in the first two Tests in Sri Lanka, McGrath said, “Playing spin in the sub-continent has been one of our concerns over the last few years. It’s not that we can’t play spin. It’s about our mindset going out there to play it. We have to be clear in our minds about our game-plan. Like when Mathew Hayden was here in 2001, him deciding to use the sweep effectively.”

McGrath was however pleased with Mitchell Starc’s bowling in Sri Lanka. “He is an attacking paceman. He pitches it up and gets the new ball to swing. When the ball gets older, he reverses it. And he’s got speed.”

The former pace spearhead admitted the Australian team faced a difficult task during the four-Test series in India early next year. “India in India will be a big challenge. We will get wickets that will turn square.”

McGrath said, defeating the current West Indies team in Tests was not a true reflection of a team’s ability.

“India will face tougher opponents. But the combination of Kohli’s youthful exuberance and aggression and Kumble’s experience and the respect he has earned is promising for India,” he said.